By Palestine Chronicle Staff  

Five EU states have already announced or initiated measures to curb trade with illegal West Bank settlements.

The Netherlands is forging ahead with legislation to ban imports from illegal settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories despite halting its push for broader sanctions against Israel following last month’s ceasefire in Gaza, the Guardian reported on Monday.

Dutch Foreign Minister David van Weel told the paper that the partial ban came in response to increased settlement expansion in the West Bank as well as violence against Palestinians, threatening the feasibility of a two-state solution.

Netherlands to ban imports from Israeli settlements
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The Netherlands is moving ahead with a plan to ban imports from Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, citing violations of international law and threats to the two-state solution.

The proposed legislation, which… pic.twitter.com/Q7Rukgc6N2

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“Now we deem it is not a time to increase sanctions on Israel because we want to see the peace plan implemented,” Van Weel said, adding that the government wanted to “encourage Israel to play a positive part in this.”

He added: “At the same time, we’re not blind to any movements on the West Bank that might move the two-state solution further away.”

Increased Settler Attacks

Since trade policy was mostly controlled by the EU, the report stated, Van Weel noted that drafting the legislation was challenging.

“We cannot just stop (all imports from illegal settlements) immediately because there is currently no legal basis for that. We are trying to make new policy now, then it has to go through parliament,” he stated.

UN Reports Sharp Increase in Settler Attacks across Occupied West Bank

Five EU states have already announced or initiated measures to curb trade with illegal West Bank settlements. Over 200 Palestinians have been killed by Isreali occupation soldiers and illegal settlers this year alone, the report noted.

According to the Guardian, “Spain and Slovenia have banned exports from settlements; Ireland and Belgium are working on legislation and implementation.” In addition, Belgium and Spain “have cut consular services to settlement residents.”

ICJ Ruling

In a landmark opinion last July, the International Court of Justice declared Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territory illegal and called for the evacuation of all illegal settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

‘Untenable Situation’: EU Unveils ‘Robust Package of Sanctions’ against Israel

In June this year, nine member states, including Spain and Ireland, requested the EU Commission “to examine how to cut trade with Israeli settlements,” in light of the ICJ ruling, the report stated.

It noted that EU member states collectively are Israel’s largest trading partner, accounting for 32 percent of Israel’s total trade in goods with the world in 2024. Israel is the EU’s 31st largest trading partner, according to the EU.

EU Review

In May, the Netherlands, historically one of Israel’s closest allies in Europe, pushed for a review of the EU-Israel association agreement, the legal framework “for tariff-free trade and other financial and cultural ties,” the report stated.

An internal EU review concluded that Israel had violated the agreement’s human rights obligations. In September, the EU executive “called for a sweeping suspension of free trade with Israel and sanctions on two far-right ministers,” the report noted.

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It stated that these measures “were put on hold” after the US-brokered ceasefire came into effect last month, “but had not been taken off the table.”

The report also noted that hundreds of senior EU diplomats have joined a campaign to urge the EU “to respond” more effectively to Israel’s violations of international law in the Gaza Strip as well as the West Bank.

(PC, Al Mayadeen)